Getting disheartened

True, petra.

Also, you've had offers, so your house is sellable. You say your offers were low, but are they reasonable enough to work with? Some serious buyers put in a "cheeky" low offer on the premise that they are willing to negotiate upwards. Have you thought about how low you can reasonably go?

I seem to have mirrored Anya's experience.

At the moment we are helping a relative look for a house, theirs is sold and they have moved into temporary housing. It may be different in some areas but this is their experience:

Early this year every house that came on the market seemed to be sold straight away. If you wanted to view you had to go on the day the agent said and they were not prepared to accommodate anyone who couldn't fit that in. They put an offer on a house quite a lot over the asking price and it wasn't enough. No negotiation, the agents all said final written offers just a few days after the viewing day. I don't think that was in anyone's interest apart from the agent but they wouldn't budge. Eventually they put in an offer on another house and said it was conditional on the sellers taking it off the market. It was accepted partly because the buyers were in a good position and able to be flexible. That was 3 months ago and nothing further has happened.

Now things are very different. Monitoring Rightmove it is clear houses are not selling so well and several have been reduced. This morning I called 2 agents to arrange viewings and they could both fit them in when I wanted to view! I was advised that offers below the asking price might be accepted.

Why the change? Brexit has made people nervous. Prices in London have bottomed out or even been reduced which makes the rest of the country stop and think. Summer holidays do make a difference but I don't think it accounts for the current market.

My advice would be to look at Rightmove very carefully. View by 'newest listed'and you will see how long properties have been on the market. If you include sold subject to contract you will see how long it took for properties to sell. Look carefully at all the photos and see if there are any clues about what you need to do to present your house more like the ones which sold quickly. As we get older sometimes our tastes are different from younger buyers.

When we sold our last house, during a downturn, we didn't get any offers until I started showing people around myself. Then we got offers from both people I showed round. Next time we sell I will do it myself.

Good luck

With regard to dressing a house for sale... as per my previous post when ds changed estate agent after one year of not one offer. He lives next door and house was in good order with a new luxury kitchen. But clearly something was lacking.

Before going to the new estate agent, myself and DH, his brother and sil who live locally got involved, even his retired uncle. We did a blitz on what had already seemed ok.

We gave the garage door a fresh coat of paint.
We put a fresh coat of stain on the wooden windows and doors.
Several flags on the patio were lifted and levelled.
All shrubs were freshly trimmed, bark chippings were raked, everything that could be, was tackled with the power hose.
All windows cleaned inside and out.
All white plastic high and low was freshly washed (again)

In preparation for estate agent pics we moved every planted tub and basket that any of us had onto the property.
I took my beautiful throws and put them over the shabby bits of his leather suite.
My dil went through his nice new kitchen so that the only thing on show was a kettle and a vase of flowers.
All windows were wide open and vertical blinds pulled to the sides to let the light in.
Lots of photos and unnecessary stuff was shoved into drawers and cupboards. (Including the electric toothbrush ds has left charging on his bedside table !!)
Dyson and ironing board into the garage.

And when any viewers were due, the planters, hanging baskets, throws were 'borrowed again' and my dil went in each time and did a thorough prep to depersonalise it.

Happily, It sold in one month.

I agree Coolgran what seems depersonalised etc to one person is not how others, especially buyers see a house. How kind of you to help your neighbour.

We took everything out of the bathrooms, which should be spotless, only leaving a plant or two, clean unused towels and a couple of expensive attractive perfume/ aftershave bottles. Definitely no toothbrushes etc! No bath mats and of course loo seats down!

The kitchen also spotless and no clutter on counter tops.

We also kept a new unused duvet cover on a spare duvet to whip out and put on our bed. The spare beds were already 'dressed'.

When looking we saw some messy houses, it didn't put us off as we knew exactly what we wanted, but the tidy well presented houses were preferred!

Well we have done all that. Could take more stuff out of the bathroom I suppose. Will give it. Go anyway. Thanks everyone

Good luck! Maybe this weekend will be the lucky one.

can I suggest you watch Selling Houses with Amanda Lamb ( afternoon TV). I hate to say this as seeming ageist but is you house "an old peoples house" with items like chintz curtains , flowery carpet, coloured bathroom suite etc, if so viewers will be mentally costing up the cost of redecorating (and usually over estimate), If this is the case a modest outlay on updating may be worth it

Timings on house sales are so unpredictable. Mine have always sold so far, but the last one took 14 weeks to complete, which seems an age when you are experiencing it. Some round here stick on the market for years, but I guess that has to be unrealistic pricing, or not really being bothered about selling.

I had problems selling my last house so I asked the estate agent for his honest opinion and it was that there was too much furniture. I had recently been divorced and moved the furniture from a much larger house into in my opinion, this tiny house.

I had the pale green carpet in the lounge cleaned and removed clutter and I then started to receive offers, too low but a start. I sold it to a young couple who paid close to the asking price.

Make sure your agent is doing his/her best for you.
If feedback is about facts that a buyer should easily be able to see from the detail (such as distance from station), is the agent describing your property clearly to potential buyers?
It is wearing and time wasting having people tramping through your house, if it doesn't meet their needs.
It might help to have a chat with the agent to make sure that they are giving you (& potential buyers) fair & honest information. As others have said, some agents are more effective and hard working than others on behalf of you as the seller. That being said it can take long time, but it helps to push for more detailed constructive feedback from viewings, not just some vague general comment. Then you can change something if necessary.

May be a good idea to look at the Home Owners Alliance websit:
hoa.org.uk/advice/guides-for-homeowners/i-am-buying/5-things-you-need-to-know-about-stamp-duty/

When I have watched home buyers programmes on TV I have been amazed how impersonal and decluttered the desirable homes are. The people buying describe this as 'modern'

I have some well fed pots of geraniums in my conservatory and other plants round the the outside of the house as I do B&B. They receive good comments. As Coolgan65 has suggested plants and pots do help I am sure.

When friends of ours bought a house they were only interested in the local school's Ofstead reports.

I think the stamp duty went up in April so there was a rush of buying before the date.

Good luck.

I sympathise with your impatience to get this moving BB! We are waiting to exchange contracts, survey being done next week on this house. The lady buying was the least enthusiastic of all our viewers, the ones we never heard from again were the "over the moon, blown away, love, love love it" ones, so take it all with a pinch if salt! We had to take a significant reduction, both in the list price and what we had set as a realistic minimum, and our Agent, who has been surpringly good all along, told us the Brexit vote has affected the housing market short term. Your choice of agent is crucial, make sure you choose one who knows your area very well and ask them for details of similar properties they have sold recently in your area. We are in a very desirable area, close to station, 25 mins into Charing Cross, excellent schools, local shops, including supermarket, village location, complete with duck ponds etc and our buyer made us an offer in four weeks of us going on the market! Our agent was confident of a quick sale due to the excellent (neutral) decor and general presentation of this house, which has been well looked after. We have also been here 40 years! OK, they are getting a bargain, but we are miving up to lincolnshire where we are buying a new build 3 bed bungalow for less than half the value of this house! Good look, its not easy at our age, (i am 74, oh 89!) but it will be worth it.

How long is a piece of string. I have bought and sold quite a few times and it has ranged from 1 day to 18 months! The timings for the most part reflect the state of the house market/economy at the time.

Good points from Anya and try more that one agent, watch their commission rates and don't get locked into a - say - four month exclusive representation.

Good luck. I have always taken the philosophical view that house buying and selling is meant when the circumstances are right, which may not be revealed until life has moved on. Eliminates stress! Che sara and all that.

My late fathers home has been on the market for 2 years, lots of interest and 4 buyers who have made serious offers then pulled out because of comments from ascerbic neighbour who shares access alley and parks there.
It went to auction recently as guaranteed 4 weeks turnaround but 10 weeks later there is a problem with land registry. The saga continues.

The fact that you've had 2 offers is good news but what you want of course is commitment, good serious offers and no faffing around.
You also want someone who's sold their house so you don't end up in a chain.
Anyone who is serious will make you a decent offer but never accept the first one.
Never take your house off the market.
Don't spend money updating as whoever buys will have their own tastes which will almost certainly be different to yours.
The trend is to knock down walls wherever possible and have kitchen-diners, snug rooms,etc.,
Have you decluttered?. Can you send some stuff to the auction rooms?.
40 years in the same house, few people can say that!.
It's going to be horribly emotional for you!.

I'm sure your agents will have given you a good idea of what kind of offer you could accept and what needs updating in your house.

New kitchens and bathrooms costs hugh money now so all of that has to be taken into account.
6 weeks is not that long, I would give it a bit longer before considering bringing the price down. What you don't want is to have it 'hanging around' at the same price for too long. In the long run you could end up getting less money for it.

Have you looked up Zoopla to see what other houses in your area have been selling for?.

Best wishes.

We were in exactly the same situation BB. We tried to sell in the last recession it took 5 years and we had to reduce the price by £30,000! I do hope that you have better luck with yours.

Thanks everyone .I take it all on board We are in a very 'desirable area' Excellent schools, 10 mins. Walk to station for Euston. Very easy access to M1 and M25.
The house is mostly decorated in pale colours with oatmeal carpet or Karndean. Kitchen is newish with solid wood work tops and slate floor. Garden south facing.
Similar houses are on at a similar price. One very near which looks lovely from outside has been on the market 2 weeks longer than us. It's a conundrum, but I expect it will work out in the end

It took almost a year to sell our family home when we divorced. We did have a sale which fell through during that time due to the buyers sale falling through. As a consequence I lost the house I was planning to buy. It's a stressful time. As others have said try to neutralise the house as much as you can and pack away stuff if you have a lot of ornaments and photos. Make sure the garden is tidy and kitchen and bathroom sweet smelling and shiny. If any of your decor is past its best it might be worth a lick of paint. Good luck!

I have to say there's not much more you can do to make it desirable. When on a visit to my late brother in the US when he was selling, he had an open house and they had a tea tray with pastries and a pot of coffee and cups for the people coming round. I thought it was a bit OTT, but their agent says that there are so many tricks now, including air scent diffusers that smell like bread baking to lure people into a state of home-iness.. LOL!

In order to sell my late father's house. I had do the 'make over'
Fresh paint.
New cushions + curtains + bedding
( just inexpensive ones, but coordinated)
Removed all personal things eg photos + ornaments)
I bought modern vases from charity shop for fresh flowers
Put fruit in fruit bowl on table
And put wine in a small wine rack on kitchen work surfaces ( which had been de cluttered)
I also put out my coffee machine.
If the viewers are for example a young soon to be married couple it provides a bit of 'aspiration'
We also painted front door and I put a bay tree (mine) next to it.
I lit the fire and as it was a cottage, I put some logs by the side of it.

I showed the viewers around by myself.
No DH or Pets. Send them out!.
Only one person needs to show the buyers around, otherwise it can be both owners talking over each other also men like to talk boilers, sheds etc
Big up the positives. Re house and area
Let the viewer go into the rooms first and you follow.
Keep all doors closed to avoid the distraction of the viewers peeking in to other rooms before you show them in.

We had house on the market with our village estate agent. But found that we were like yourself getting low offers
so we found another agent and asked if we could go duel agent and they both agreed
in the end we had a buyer with both agents!.
Obviously we went with best offer

Just a thought please check out your photos.
We asked that the sky was made blue (it was raining when they were taken)
We also made sure that they didn't show next doors bins and cars ( all can be air brushed)
All sounds mad
But needs must

Good luck to all who are in the painful process of selling.

Sold our family home of 34 yrs last year. We put it on market first week in January and moved to our apartment middle of October. The third offer we accepted finally completed but we went almost all the way with the second one who pulled out at the eleventh hour. Horrible business, but like having a baby once it is over you forget about the pain.

Don't forget also that everything can change in a few hours - an agent told me that everything, but everything, sells in the end, and I am sure your house is lovely. The buyer is out there, and will arrive tomorrow, next week or even next month, and then you are on your way. I have moved five times, and a couple of times really felt I was going to scream if nothing happened soon - and then it did. (We never failed to sell) Keep calm and carry on advertising!

If you delve into the Rightmove site, you can get to a page that tells you the average time it takes to sell a house, of your type, in your post code. It might be of some use/ comfort.

I can't remember how I got there, but might have just Googled the question. It was spot on for us!

J52.... the neighbour we were being so kind to, our entire family lending pots of flowers for the patio etc.....was our son.

J52 I went on the Rightmove site. According to them we have a few weeks to go for the average selling time in our area. So that has made us feel a little better.
We have DGs this weekend so it is constant tidying just in case. We are off to the zoo today so house can have a rest